Prehistoric art often renders animals in spiritual, even divine, form—but primitive beast images can also reflect a degree of humanity. This program sifts through the complexity of the animal-god concept, identifying the place of the lion, the giraffe, the wolf, the elephant, and many other creatures in a wide range of myths and religions. With detailed observations of sculpture, carvings, and statuary—including Native American totem poles, European gargoyles and grotesques, and Egyptian mummies honoring the cat-headed goddess Ubasti—the video demonstrates an age-old interconnection between our reverence for nature and our need to determine our status in it. (53 minutes)